.: Chapter 5: Two Months Before :.

"We've found our next target, Jet. The Fire Nation's just arrived."

"Where?" I asked, my mind making up various plans. If it was a far away village, we'd have to go in three week shifts. I'd stay round the clock, of course. The Freedom Fighters might be helping me with this war, but it was still my war. It was still my fight, my revenge, and my vendetta. They were all too young to understand. Maybe Smellerbee and Longshot could rotate staying here while I'm gone… but then, Longshot was never one to give orders.

"Jet, they're here in the valley," Smellerbee told me tentatively.

I jumped to my feet, furious. "What? How dare they come here!"

Smellerbee took a step back, surprised by the ferocity of my response. "Jet, what's the big deal? So we go get rid of the Fire Nation again. We've done it before!"

"No, Smellerbee, you don't understand." I buried my fingers in my hair. They can't come here. They shouldn't have come here. "This is too close to home. What if someone betrays us again?" My hands were shaking, and I had to sit down. I settled for an ungraceful flop onto the floor of my room. "They could… they could ruin everything!"

"Aw, Jet, that was a one-time thing. Everyone here's proved their loyalties to you a hundred times over. The boy learned his lesson. He won't be betraying you again, right?"

I nodded. "He learned his lesson. You're right, Smellerbee. I'm just being ridiculous." She smiled, satisfied, and left. I stayed on the floor, my head in my hands. Of all the villages in the Earth Kingdom, they had to choose this one.

Night came quietly, and I slipped out of my room unnoticed. I dropped to the forest floor and started walking, not quite sure where I was headed. My feet led me down a path I'd traveled many times before, around our Fire Nation traps and down the hillside. I was out in the open now, my instincts sharper than ever. But at the same time, the twinkling lights of the town gave me hope. There were still people there. The Fire Nation hadn't destroyed their lives yet.

A soft noise came from a nearby hill. I whirled instinctively, my hook swords out. Then I saw her as she came up to me and ran into my arms.

"Jet! You came!" she giggled. I smiled at her.

"Of course I came, Rinpoche." She wrinkled her tiny nose at me.

"Jet, don't call me that."

"Fine," I laughed. "Rina, then." She nodded, satisfied. "So, Rina, has anything interesting happened since yesterday?"

"Yeah, but you won't like it very much." Rina looked up at me, and then tugged insistently on my sleeve. "Sit. It hurts to look at you. You're too tall." I laughed again – something that I hardly ever did in the tree house – and obeyed.

"So, Rina, what's happened?"

"Well, the Fire Nation's taken over the village. The whole village, Jet. You wouldn't believe it if you saw it. At first they were really mean, but after a couple of hours it wasn't so bad." I tensed, but I gave an encouraging nod to the little girl and she continued with her story. "One of them even gave me this little doll, Jet!" She held it out for me to examine. It was soft, a rag doll with long black hair and a green dress. "Her name is Mrs. Pretty."

"So, you don't… you don't mind them, then?" She shook her head. "They haven't bothered you at all?"

"No way, Jet. The one who gave me this doll said I reminded him of his little girl, back in the Fire Nation."

My blood ran cold. "The Fire Nation soldiers don't have children, Rina." They're not even human. There's nothing inside them, nothing at all! No person can just kill another in cold blood. It's impossible.

"Well obviously they do, because I reminded him of his—"

"He was lying!" I shouted. Rina pulled away and looked at me with her six year old eyes. "Rina, you can't trust anything they say. They're liars and murderers and very bad people. They will hurt you, and they will hurt your family."

"Jet, I don't understand. They wouldn't do that to me. They like me!" She sniffed and hugged her doll tighter. I glared at it as if it were the source of all the world's ills. I wanted to rip it apart. If it were anybody's but Rina's, I would have. This little girl was the only connection I had to other people, other human beings besides the Freedom Fighters. She was like my little sister, and I wasn't going to let anything hurt her.

"They might like you now, Rina," I said more calmly, "but someday the Fire Lord is going to tell them to do something that will hurt you. And he's their boss, so they'll have to listen."

"Why are people so mean, Jet?" Rina sniffled as she toyed with Mrs. Pretty's hair.

"People aren't mean, Rina. The Fire Nation Soldiers aren't people. They've had it too good for too long. And I'm here to make sure that you'll get your life back."

"Oh, Jet, thank you!" Rina sobbed. I felt relief in my bones when I realized that she finally understood. She hugged me and then stood up. "I have to go Jet." She ran away, back towards the village and the Fire Nation, dragging Mrs. Pretty by the arm.

Evil doll, I scowled to myself. They're doing all they can to turn her against me. But I won't let that happen. I'm not going to let them hurt her. I'm going to free this valley from the Fire Nation.

Whatever the cost.

I spent the next two months trying and failing to shake the Fire Nation from the valley. Longshot took down their soldiers when they ventured too close to the woods. Smellerbee infiltrated the village at night and robbed their stores. She took anything she could get her hands on: blasting jelly, food, arrows, armor. Slowly, we filled our warehouse with these Fire Nation "novelties." I spent my days plotting, trying to think of any possible way to remove the soldiers from the village without hurting Rina. At the same time, I was on edge. I knew the Freedom Fighters were getting antsy, and they wanted to free the village right then. But I couldn't risk failure. I had to sit, and wait and hope that people would accept my better judgment. They didn't.

It started at dinner, a month and three weeks after I met with Rina.

"Jet, what's taking so long?" The Duke whined. The entire table and surrounding treetops fell silent. I wasn't sure if it was out of shock or agreement.

"What are you talking about?"

"We're taking forever to get rid of the Fire Nation," The Duke explained. "Why don't we just go fight them already and get it over with?"

"Because I don't want anything happen to this village!" I retorted.

"Who cares? Like you said, Jet: everything has its price." I stiffened. If there was one thing that annoyed me more than the Fire Nation, it was my own words turned against me. "If this village burns to the ground, the valley will still be free. The Fire Nation will never come back." The Freedom Fighters cheered at The Duke's announcement, and I started panicking. I had to regain control of the situation.

"You don't know what you're talking about," I announced shakily.

"Don't you mean you don't know what you're talking about?" The Duke shot back. "You're the one who said that, Jet, not me!"

"I am your leader!" I shouted, losing all patience. Over twenty shocked faces looked back at me as I slammed my fists on the table and got to my feet. "If I don't want to mobilize against the Fire Nation yet, then we will not mobilize."

"Jet, I was only saying that—"

"I don't care what you were saying!" I roared, flipping the table over. The Freedom Fighters screamed and backed away. "You don't understand. This is a delicate situation. There is no room for failure. We can't lose this town. No one can get hurt. Everything has to go perfectly. If even one building burns, this entire mission is pointless!" The Duke stared at me, his eyes wide with shock. Smellerbee ran over to him and put a comforting arm around his shoulder.

"Jet, what are you doing? This is The Duke you're talking to! He was only trying to help and understand," she shouted at me. I blinked at her – Smellerbee never yelled, much less at me. "I know you don't want to lose the village, Jet, but sometimes things happen. Mistakes are made. We can't guarantee anything."

"We will this time," I insisted. "Everything will be perfect. I am not going to watch this village burn. Does anyone else have any questions?" The Freedom Fighters looked at me and shook their heads. I stormed away and took the first rope glider back to my room. I curled up in a corner and rested my head on my knees, breathing deeply.

I won't do it. This village is going to survive the attack.

Smellerbee's words rang in my head. We can't guarantee anything.

But I had already guaranteed Rina that I'd help. I said I wouldn't let the Fire Nation hurt her, or her family. I said everything would be okay.

Why am I telling her this anyway? She doesn't care about me anymore. She's got that Fire Nation Soldier to care for her now, him and his stupid doll and his lies. I don't owe her anything.

I can't let her go through what I went through. I can't let her watch her house burn to the ground, destroying everything she's ever loved.

"Jet?" Smellerbee called softly from outside the door.

"Go away," I answered gruffly. She didn't talk again, so I assumed she'd left. Probably gone off to stand on the dam with Longshot.

The dam. Now there's an idea.

A/N: Rina-riffic surprise this chapter-I hope you all picked up on it! And what is going on in Jet's head? Sometimes I believe even he doesn't have any idea what he's thinking...

Thanks to Jackie for reviewing! As for what's coming? We shall see next chapter. It could be a game changer!